WHERE’S LAWLER? Frustrated New Yorkers Gather in Peekskill for Empty-Chair Town Hall
“We wanted to make our concerns clear and felt we had no choice.” - Maureen Morrissey, Mount Kisco
PEEKSKILL, NEW YORK — This past Saturday, in the absence of any in-person opportunities to communicate directly with Congressman Mike Lawler, some 500 frustrated New Yorkers gathered in New York’s 17th congressional district for an empty-chair town hall. Over 200 attendees, unable to get into the packed Peekskill venue, held a spontaneous rally on the sidewalk outside.
“Ann and I put together this empty seat Town Hall because we made repeated attempts to ask Mike Lawler to meet with us, to no avail,” said Maureen Morrissey, a resident of Mount Kisco. “We wanted to make our concerns clear and felt we had no choice. With the support of other local constituents concerned about funding for services like Medicaid and the SAVE Act, we had over 500 people sign up and attend, with hundreds participating in an impromptu rally outside.”
Some 500 frustrated New Yorkers gathered for an empty-chair town hall in Peekskill, NY. | CREDIT: Empire State Voices
While Congressman Lawler has been happy to attend events outside of his district and around the state, his constituents in Westchester and the Hudson Valley have been unable to get him to meet with them in person. Rep. Lawler did not respond to an invitation to attend Saturday’s town hall; instead, he quickly organized his own telephone town hall with pre-screened, largely friendly questions. But the people of New York 17 weren’t fooled, and they weren’t pleased.
“I realize my role here today is so much more than my own story,” said Melita Corselli, a single mother of four from North Salem. “I realize that today, I’m here to be the voice of the forgotten, the storyteller of the overlooked, and, more importantly, the advocate for those who refuse to be silenced. I’m here today as a mother, a sister, a daughter, a friend, a neighbor to let [Rep. Lawler] know that when he attacks what belongs to us, we will fight, and we will win.
Rep. Lawler’s constituents in Westchester and the Hudson Valley have been unable to get him to meet with them in person. | CREDIT: Empire State Voices
Many speakers expressed their frustration with Congressman Lawler’s recent votes, saying that his record showed a callous indifference toward the very real struggles of his own constituents. Last month, Representative Mike Lawler voted for the House GOP’s budget resolution, which authorized committees to cut up to $2 trillion in funding from federal programs and services in order to fund vast tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has found that these goals will be impossible to achieve without steep cuts to Medicare or Medicaid.
“I’m not a public speaker, but, you know, it’s time. It’s time that somebody stands up and says: ‘No more. I’m not a fraud!” said Kennedy Fosina, a cancer survivor and Medicaid recipient from Westchester County. “I lost my home, I lost my pension, I had to file bankruptcy. I currently have to live with family because $1,489 a month is not a livable wage. Take away the Medicaid—I can’t live with dignity, and we all deserve to live with dignity.”
Representative Mike Lawler voted for the House GOP’s budget resolution, which authorized committees to cut up to $2 trillion in funding from federal programs and services, including Medicare and Medicaid. | CREDIT: Empire State Voices
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About Empire State Voices
Empire State Voices (ESV) is a multi-year campaign dedicated to amplifying the voices of everyday working New Yorkers. ESV is fighting for economic policies that make life more affordable for constituents and holding members of Congress across the state accountable when they fail to do the same.
